First Baptist Church Of Memphis

Let the Goose Fly 

  Well here we are at the beginning of the summer, a time for some at least, for a change of plans, a change of pace.  We used to describe that as the lazy, hazy days of summer.   And maybe those days do come, say mid July and August, but now the image that comes to mind is of folks making mad dash for the waters of a beach.  We’ve been cooped up, confined, and now at last we break free from our dull, wearisome routine to do something exciting and energizing.

  I used to hate the fact that Pentecost, the observance of the Holy Spirit coming upon the disciples, always fell near the beginning of summer.  It seemed to get lost there.  And I suppose that’s true.  But it may be that it also fits.  For isn’t breaking free from the conventional, the expected, the ordinary, the routine, into the creative, the dynamic, the innovative, the visionary what the Holy Spirit is all about?  The Holy Spirit is the power of God unleashing the potential of Christ’s church, in many cases, undiscovered or unrealized potential.  

  And goodness knows we need the Holy Spirit.  You see in the church, as in most every human institution, there is a tendency to get stuck.  We have an idea.  It seems to work.  Then we repeat the process, which is fine, but all to soon we’ve turned the idea into a pattern and then a policy, and then before you know it, we’re turning it into law, and pretty soon you have such an airtight system that no fresh breeze dares blow through.  But the Holy Spirit is God’s intervention into that scenario—God’s breaking into and breaking through so that we can break free to do that which we never dreamed.

  In preparing for the class on Celtic Christianity, I was reminded that the ancient Celts thought of the Holy Spirit not as a dove, but as a goose.  Most say that that is simply because geese are far more frequent in the British Isles than doves.  But whatever the reason, you have to agree that there is a stark contrast. Doves tend to be small and timid and meek and peaceful, ever cooing.  Geese on the other hand, from my experience, tend to be big, old, honkin’, and wild—abrasive, obnoxious, and not to be ignored—anything but tame.  I once saw a goose chase a guy who had hit a golf ball near him out of that fairway, through a second, and into a third.  Yes, an encounter with a goose will by necessity open up new possibilities, even if its just realizing unknown foot speed.  So, unbiblical though it may be, maybe the Celts were on to something.  And understanding this about the Holy Spirit, then, begs a question:  Does it have to be that way?  Do we have to get stuck?  Does the Holy Spirit have to come crashing in?  Can we structure our hearts, our lives, our
families, our church, our future in such a way that allows for the entrance of the Spirit without it having to break down the door?  Quincy Jones once said that Stevie Wonder would rehearse a song to a place slightly short of perfection and then stop rehearsal and say, “Let’s leave a little space for the spirit to walk through.”  

  I believe friends, that the Spirit is among us, that the Spirit is trying to teach us some new things about ourselves and our potential and our future.  So, let’s listen up and “leave a little space.”  We need not fear the Spirit.  Oh, it may be wild, but it only seeks to enable us to do that which lies beyond our dreams.

Grace,

David